


Arlan's Promise

by Rae_Parks



Category: Original Work
Genre: Broken Promises, Clairvoyance, Copyright, Cross my heart, Cross-Posted on Wattpad, Death, Diary/Journal, Fireflies, Follow my wattpad account @RaeParks18, Gen, Grandmothers, Grim Reapers, Human-Monster War (Undertale), Humans, Inspired By Undertale, Jester Lavorre's Sketchbook, Key to freedom, Light and Darkness, Mages, Magic, Monsters, No Plagerisim, Not a fanfic, Original Story - Freeform, Orignal Characters - Freeform, Princess - Freeform, Promises, Royalty, Shadow War, Skeletons, Spaghetti, Temporary Character Death, Time Travel, angel - Freeform, erased from existance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-29
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:13:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26173276
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rae_Parks/pseuds/Rae_Parks
Summary: When I was a little girl my grandmother told me many stories. Amongst all of them my favorites were the Tales of the Alden. An Ancient race of beings made of magic. Grandmother often spoke of how our Ancestors were once friends with these beings.Join Princess Blythe of Arlan as she journeys through the Veil a golden cage in which the Alden have been imprisoned for Centuries! Along the way she fights against the Shadows of the past and reminds the Alden that they are only Monsters if they choose to be.Please note that this story is an Original Work meaning all content and characters belong to me and if you see this work posted on another site (except my account on Wattpad RaeParks18) please contact me. The inspiration of this story was the rpg video game by Toby Fox Undertale.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

Prologue: Blythe of Arlan

When I was a little girl my grandmother told me stories. Tales of an Ancient race called the Alden and how our ancestors were friends. The Alden are not human, but beings of magic and they could live for hundreds of years. My Grandmother was considered to be the old crazy lady in our kingdom, her stories, and legends of which she firmly believed in despite the ridicule she received. Were considered nothing but fairy tales by everyone, all of her friends and family even I did not believe her tales once upon a time. But things are very different now and the world is changing.

My name is Blythe of the Kingdom of Arlan, well Princess Blythe of Arlan, and I write this book in the hopes that my actions will be understood. I don't want history to repeat itself and I could never forgive myself if an innocent soul is punished. Those outside our lands are already skeptical as I have seen in the negotiations and they are afraid. People who act on their fear with a lack of understanding can inadvertently cause great pain. My prayer is that the words that I write, my experiences, and my hopes, will bring people together. Many portions of this book were adapted from my journal and in some places my friends fill in the blanks. This is done so that all the readers may have a clearer picture of what happened.

I am going to start this story with my mother Elanore; she ran a small bakery and coffee shop. Her home town is known as Heartstown, a small town on the outskirts of my kingdom. Even back then my grandmother was considered the village crazy woman. My mother once told me that she earned that title after her husband, my grandfather died. She went to everyone claiming that the monster who killed her husband was only trying to protect them. To this very day, my Grandmother claims that the person who was executed for her husband's death was innocent.

Before my Grandfather's death, back when my mother was still a small child. Grandfather took it upon himself to teach mother the secrets of the woods. Not far from Heartstown was a forest full of magic and not many dared venture into the forest. The secret of the woods is an ancient tradition that allowed people to thrive in the forest. This Tradition had been passed from parent to child in my family for generations. When my mother passed on these traditions to my brother and me, she told us that it was the forest and Grandfathers lessons that brought her and father together.

My parent's first meeting was quite literally a magical encounter, but they never realized that magic was in the air that day. For my mother going to the woods and foraging was a regular occurrence. Grandmother was a herbalist and traveling merchants would pay quite a hefty sum for the herbs and spices that grew in the magic woods, due to many people believing it to be cursed. My mother's visits to the woods grew more frequent after my grandfather's death, being in the forest, and remembering his lessons made her feel like he was still with her.

On one of her trips through the woods, she saw a traveler being attacked by an angry mother bear. Now all the creatures in the magic woods are quite different from the average beast, they would only comply with a secret holder. They react viciously against anyone who did not know the secrets of the woods. To calm the bear, my mother danced around the forest and tapped special rhythms on tree trunks using a pair of sticks. The mother bear and her cubs soon began thumping their paws to the same beat and joined in the dance.

My mother brought the traveler home where my grandmother treated his wounds. Grandmother was the closest thing Heartstown had to a doctor since it was a small town and on the outskirts. The traveler that they saved and treated was my father, the Crown Prince of Arlan. After that day my father began to court my mother, keeping his title as a prince a secret. They both fell in love and to the prince's surprise grandmother was already aware of his title when he confessed his identity to them.

When the Crown Prince of Arlan announced that he was going to marry not only a commoner from the outskirts of the kingdom but also the daughter of the village crazy lady there was quite the uproar. My parents often told us that they knew that the public would not take the engagement well and that father was prepared to abdicate the throne. A lot of things could have gone wrong for my parents. However, my Grandmother had a few tricks up her sleeves and many secrets locked away in her mind. In general, my family is full of secrets and my Grandmother sure knew when to bring them to the light.

One of our Family's secrets was my Grandmother's and Grandfather's lives before they moved to Heartstown. My Grandmother was at one point betrothed to the Former King of Arlan, my Dad's Dad. They both cared for each other greatly but just as friends. As their arranged wedding grew closer, they both confessed to each other that they had fallen in love with another. My Grandmother was in love with the King's best friend and The King was in love with her best friend.

Together both sides of my grandparents made a plan. My mother's parents went into hiding at a remote part of the kingdom. While my father's parents got married under the pretense of preventing a war. My parents Ironic Love Story became known all over our continent and even helped some people escape arranged marriages.

Many people grew to love my parents as rulers especially after their coronation as King and Queen of Arlan. My older brother Aaron was born a few years into their reign and I was born six years after him.

Although our Grandmother held the title as the crazy woman, she still told some of the best stories in the world. In the Kingdom of Arlan and other nations on our continent, we often hear tales of vicious monsters who eat children and have cursed our continent. This curse prevents anyone from leaving or entering the continent, causing us to have no contact with the outside world. Grandmother on the other hand taught us that once upon a time those so-called monsters were once friends. What I didn't know at the time was that these fairy tales were actually our history, a history erased after a war long forgotten.

As time went on and we got older, my brother eventually stopped playing with me and listening to my grandmother's stories. Aaron was the heir to the throne and the council did not approve of him wasting his time with fantasy. He had lessons and other royal duties to attend to and with our age gap, we became distant. I could not relate easily with him and father's younger brother our Uncle was not very fond of me. Since uncle was the one put in charge of Aaron's education and a member of the royal council, things were very difficult for a long time.

My parents loved me but they were also busy running the kingdom and as I was still very young back then many things were hidden from me. So as per the council's suggestions, I started having play dates with children from noble and sometimes even royal families. It was horrible; many of the children were bossy and spoiled. Since my mother despite her royal blood was raised in humble beginnings. I was taught to treat people with respect, not to treat people as lesser beings, and to always be kind. "A person's occupation or social status means nothing if their heart is black" was a philosophy that was passed down to us from my mother's side of the family. Seeing so many of my supposed companions abuse their status was disgraceful in my eyes.

Amongst all of the children I was forced to spend time with Sigmund was the worst, there are no words that can do justice to his horrible attitude. He was the firstborn prince of a kingdom that my parents were negotiating with, so I was often forced to keep him company during diplomatic visits. I never interacted with his parents much except for during meals as they together with my own parents spent most of their time in meetings.

During one of these Diplomatic meetings, I overheard Sigmund's caretaker discussing a possible arranged marriage between Sigmund and I. I was not the only one who overheard this conversation, and soon rumors spread throughout both our kingdoms of a betrothal. People began whispering about my future life as a queen of a powerful kingdom, a life that I did not want. Some presumptuous nobles even tried to "congratulate" me as future Queen. As a member of the Royal family I was taught to ignore such gossip but even back then those rumors made me uneasy. The worst part of all was that Prince Sigmund my rumored fiancé was cruel in his treatment of me.

Eventually, in desperation, I begged my parents to stop the play dates between Sigmund and I. They understood thankfully as they had heard of the rumors, but to avoid a political disaster they had to end all of my playdates. That part was a bit disappointing because I had made a few friends. The only good thing that happened from that event is that I impressed much of the foreign nobility by learning their native languages in such a short time through only listening. This gave my parents an opportunity, to pressure the council into letting me join my brother's lessons.

Now my uncle was not happy about that, he was my father's younger brother, most trusted advisor, and a member of the royal council. On top of allowing me to join my brother in his lessons, my father had also changed a few of the kingdoms' laws allowing me to be in line for the throne. Despite my brother's birth Uncle would have still been 2nd in line to the throne, many nobles were not happy with this law.

My uncle never bothered to interact with me much before I joined Aaron's lessons, aside from arranging play dates or scolding me for unladylike behavior. Once I started attending lessons things changed. Whenever we were in the study Uncle would either give me ridiculously easy or hard assignments. He spent a lot of time and energy trying to make me give up. Saying things like politics is no place for a woman or you have no need for these lessons I am just wasting my time with you. It hurt me so much to hear things like that from him, a man that my Father and Brother spoke so highly of. But of course, he never acted that way when my father or brother was around so no one believed me. It hurt so much how everyone just told me that I was just overreacting.

My grandmother with her title as the crazy old woman was the only one who believed me. She started bringing me to the library and helping me study. In between topics, she would tell me tales of forgotten times. She was very clever in picking legends that helped me understand the relevance of a lesson I was having trouble with.

Not long after my grandmother started helping me, my performance in my uncle's classes improved. Soon everyone was talking about it, but I had learned to not care about gossip anymore. Grandmother helped me build up my self-confidence. Doing well in our uncle's classes helped my brother and I reconnect, we even started studying for our tests together.

Before I knew it years went by and I enjoyed many adventures with my older brother. One evening as I sat with my family at the dinner table, my uncle made an announcement that would change my life forever. In honor of my parent's wedding anniversary, Uncle had planned a surprise vacation for our family. Needless to say, we were all quite excited especially when he said that he arranged for us to go to mother's home town. My uncle claimed that it was the most fitting place for the celebration since that was where they met and fell in love.

My father actually cried tears of joy at my uncle's gesture as he and mother shared a chaste kiss. My brother and I both began to make plans for all the things we would do in Heartstown. We did not get to visit mother's hometown often since it was so far from the capital. In my excitement, I did not notice my grandmother had gone silent and thoughtful or the evil smile that Uncle tried to hide as he left the dining hall.


	2. Chapter 1: Grandmother's Secret Room

I woke up at the chime of the clock tower, as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes I peered out my window to see it was still midnight. It was still dark of course but I just couldn't get back to sleep. I feel a bit uneasy for some reason but I just can't figure out why. If my mother knew that I was still awake she would surely scold me. I am currently 12 years old and despite being considered a prodigy for being academically on par with my 18-year-old brother. I am still a child who has a bedtime, plus it's going to be a long journey to Heartstown.

I spend around 5-15 minutes trying different tricks to fall asleep, but none of them were working. Giving up I decide to leave my room and sneak into the palace's kitchen to swipe some cookies and milk. The Castle of Arlan which is also known as the castle of promises is considered to be the oldest structure in all of Bermuda. The castle was full of secret passageways and rooms, known only to a few. I often used these passageways to sneak around the castles. Eventually, I leave the hidden passageway and walk into one of the castle corridors. The entrance and exit to this particular passageway was a large painting portraying two female figures. This particular painting is one of the oldest pieces of art in the castle. The rooms and corridors of the castle of promises are filled with art paintings, portraits, and tapestries that are seen everywhere.

Every time I leave the hidden passageway I like to examine the painting, of a beautiful young woman with blonde hair and green eyes sitting under a tree with a monster. At least that's the word that humankind uses to refer to the other woman's race. One of the things that makes this painting unique was how unlike other depictions of monsters in Arlanian artwork, this monster woman did not seem scary. Despite the inhumane appearance, I can almost see the kindness in her eyes. The monster actually looks like a teddy bear that carries itself with the poise and grace of a noblewoman.

I was brought out of my musings by the sounds of approaching footsteps and I quickly hide behind a pillar. As they get closer I recognize the voices of my uncle and his apprentice Marcello.

"Have you gathered everything from the list I gave you?" My uncle asked Marcello with his typical no-nonsense tone.

Marcello is 15 years old and is considered a prodigy in Alchemy and a court herbalist. So I can't help but wonder what my uncle wanted him to find. As I try to get closer to hear better, I accidentally bump into a suit of armor. The sound of metal clanking echoes through the quiet halls.

My Uncle and Marcello stop talking and look around for the source of the noise. Not wanting to be seen, I sneaked back into the hidden passage. Sliding down to the floor I try to catch my breath closing my eyes and I count to ten.

When I opened my eyes again, I saw my grandmother standing in front of me. Startled I jump to my feet, I had not heard her approach. Sometimes I wonder how she does that. Before I can make up any excuses for being up past my bedtime, she speaks.

"Follow me, Blythe I need to show you something," My grandmother said as she leads me down the secret passageway.

I had never seen her so serious before, she was usually funny and cheerful, but as I follow her to an unfamiliar part of the castle. I can't help but notice how worried and stressed she looks.

"Grandmother," I said softly as she turned to look at me.

"Where are we?" I asked looking around the strange passageway. "I haven't been here before."

"As you know Blythe, this castle was made and designed by the founder of our nation Arlan." My grandmother said as she wiped away some cobwebs from a wall.

She gestures for me to take a closer look at the wall and I comply. Along the wall of this particular passageway were carvings.

"Our Ancestors were close friends and allies to a race of people called the Alden. Beings of Magic, although nowadays they don't call them the Alden ... They call them monsters." My grandmother said retelling a familiar story as she gestured to the carvings.

"Grandmother!" I interrupted "I don't understand? Why are you telling me this story again?"

"Blythe, I believe that you are old enough to know the truth." My grandmother said as she gently took my hand and placed it on one of the carvings.

As my hand touched the stone colorful lights flowed through every crevice of every carving. The images on the walls came alive portraying my grandmother's story.

"Do you remember the tale of the shadow war, Blythe?" My grandmother asked me as we continued walking through the halls.

I almost didn't hear her since I was so entranced with the magic that was happening around me.

"The shadow war was where the human and Alden race fought together to banish the shadows from the earth. The Alden suffered so many casualties in that war; it almost drove their kind to extinction." I replied recalling the story to the best of my abilities.

My grandmother smiled at me as we arrived at a large door. It was huge and on it was carved a strange symbol in the center of a diamond.

"This symbol on the door is the crest of the Alden," My grandmother said noticing my confusion. But before I could ask her any questions, she pushed open the door.

The room was full of books, paintings, tapestries, gold, jewels and I could feel the magic in this room. It is hard to explain the feeling of sensing magic. It was strange feeling magic for the first time; it was like it was somehow familiar to me yet something I never noticed. The closest description I can think of for this feeling is like a sixth sense, a sense that I had never really used before.

My grandmother led me to a fireplace in a corner of the room. Amongst the various objects on the mantle was a large glass jar full of fireflies. I sat down as per grandmother's instructions and watched in amazement as she picked up the jar.

When she opened the jar and released the insects into the empty fireplace. The tiny insects buzzed around until grandmother placed some firewood into the fireplace. I couldn't believe my eyes as I watched the bugs descend on the wood and burst into flames. My grandmother smiled at my reaction to the now blazing fire.

"Blythe, you are aware of why people call me crazy." My grandmother asked me but it sounded more like a statement than a question. She had a distant look in her eyes as she gazed at the fire.

"Because of what happened to grandfather, right?" I responded meekly to her words. I was feeling so confused and uneasy from everything that was happening. Grandmother never liked to speak of her deceased husband.

"Mother told me once that you tried to prevent the execution of his murder?" I said softly, my voice was barely a whisper. I was afraid of how she would react to my words.

Four years ago, back when I was 8 years old I once overheard my parents and grandmother arguing. It happened a few days after my other grandparents the former King and Queen died. I didn't hear the whole conversation and they stopped talking once they noticed me. But I did overhear them talking about my grandfather and his murderer. Whatever happened behind this argument changed something between my parents and grandmother. Their relationship was never the same after that day.

"Holofernes did not kill my husband." My grandmother breathed out. She did not yell or scream but I could see the sorrow in her eyes as she spoke that name. It was like at that moment she aged 10 years before my eyes.

"Holofernes?" I ask her not recognizing the name.

"The one who they blamed for your grandfather's death." My grandmother said with her eyes tearing up as she choked out her next words.

"When I was around your age, I wandered too far from my group. We were traveling from my birth kingdom to this one. My best friend, your other grandmother, and I were playing in the forest." My grandmother said as she tried to distract herself by making some hot chocolate.

We both were silent for a while, the deaths of my other grandparents were hard on all of us. Especially my other grandmother, her favorite drink was hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows. My grandmother always said that she hated marshmallows but after the funeral no matter what she would always put marshmallows in the hot chocolate. I remember asking grandmother about the marshmallows once after I had a nightmare, she told me that it reminded her of her best friend.

That was the first time my grandmother and I had a serious heart to heart talk and it became a little tradition of ours, to drink hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows late in the evening or sometimes in the early morning and talk.

After putting the kettle on the fireplace and sitting down again she.

"I got lost in the woods that day," She said while setting up a small table for our midnight snack.

"That was how I met Holofernes; I was running around the woods scared out of my mind." Grandmother said with a small chuckle.

"I ended up tripping on the roots of an old tree and landed face-first into a bramble bush." My grandmother said with such a monotone voice and a straight face that I burst out laughing. My grandmother gave me a smile at my reaction and continued telling her story.

"Holofernes was a member of the Alden race. I had stumbled into the Hidden Sanctuary of the Alden."

As my grandmother spoke those words I was filled with excitement. The tales of the Alden had always been a favorite of mine. Now under different circumstances, I would have thought that this was just my grandmother joking with me or proof of her insanity. But keep in mind I had just walked down a magic passageway and watched fireflies light a fireplace. So my grandmother telling me that my favorite bedtime story was more than just a fairy tale was not too farfetched, in my opinion.

"So all the stories about the Shadow War, The Great War, and Kek are all true?" I asked worried about the villains from my nightmares.

"Every story I have ever told you is true my dear. Even though sometimes I wish that they weren't" My grandmother says sadly.

"There is a lot of evil in the world Blythe and I pray that what I tell you now will help prepare you for what is to come." My grandmother said before getting up to go fetch the kettle. I had not even heard the kettle's whistle as my mind echoed her words.

"What is to come?" I ask repeating allowed the words that echoed in my mind.

"What do you mean by that?" I say as I feel my brows furrow in confusion: a habit of mine that my brother loves to tease me about.

"In the time I spent with Holofernes and the kingdom of Alden, I learned many things...Including magic." My grandmother said but before I could ask any questions. She held up her hand and put marshmallows in our hot chocolate.

"There are three kinds of Magic; Aldenian, Soul/Heart, and Black Magic." My grandmother said as she gestured to an old tapestry that held 3 intricate symbols, each one representing the three kinds of magic.

"Now all of the three kinds of Magic have different subtypes and classifications. Aldenian Magic is a kind of Magic that can be taught and learned." My grandmother explained as she gave me a small demonstration by making a seed grow.

"On the other hand soul or heart magic is the opposite. This kind of Magic is unique for every individual." My grandmother paused for a bit before she continued.

"Although it is not uncommon for a family member or in some cases those of the same species to have similar magic."

I have always been fairly quiet, preferring to listen instead of speaking. But everything my grandmother has revealed to me has my head spinning with all sorts of questions. Drinking my hot chocolate and munching on a cookie in the early hours of the morning, is not unfamiliar to me. I take comfort in the warm beverage and chewy cookie; however, my grandmother's next word almost made me choke.

"My heart magic is quite rare from what Holofernes told me." My grandmother began as she took a long drink of her hot chocolate.

"I sometimes see brief glimpses of the future." She says with a far off look in her eyes.

"Grandmother-" I start to ask but grandmother cut me off.

"I have no control of who, what, when, where, or how the things I see happen, and no matter what I do the things I see always happen." My grandmother says as tears run down her wrinkled cheeks.

I could not speak or move from shock, only stare and listen as my grandmother cries. This was the first time I had ever seen her cry in my life. In this room, I was seeing a side of my grandmother that I had never seen before.

"My husband, my friend Holofernes and Your grandparent's deaths are a few of the things that I have seen in my visions, events that I have tried so hard to prevent." My grandmother says as her tears start flowing faster down her face.

I quickly get up from my seat and give her the biggest hug I can give. Once she had calmed down and regained some of her composure, she continued.

"My heart magic is a blessing and a curse. I have seen beautiful and terrifying things. My warnings are often left unheard and ignored. But I hope for your sake that this time will be different." My grandmother says as she pulls out a white handkerchief from her pocket and wipes the tears from her eyes.

"My glimpses into the future are short and often times unclear. An Aldenian with a similar gift to mine once told me that 'when you take a glance into the future, you never see the whole picture'. How we interpret what we see also affects how our story will play out. That's why prophecies and predictions are so vague because the future is not set in stone."

Grandmother stands up and walks to one of the many bookshelves looking for something. While she looks through the books I finish my now cold hot chocolate and reflect on what I have been told. After all, something very big must be coming from how grandmother is acting. I won't deny that seeing grandmother so frazzled was making me terrified of the future. Grandmother returns quickly with a dairy and a small sketchbook in her hands.

"Take these with you on your journey tomorrow Blythe." She says as she hands me the leather-bound books.

"This is a Dairy I have kept of dreams that may either be visions of the future or simply my nightmares." She explained as she pointed at the journal.

"The content of the sketchbook however is without a doubt glimpse of the future, interpreting the sketches will be tricky for unlike my dairy those are hard to understand." She says as I gaze at her confused.

"What do you mean by that? I am not sure I understand Grandmother?" I ask her pleadingly as my head spins.

"I am sorry my dear, I sometimes forget that you are still only a child. You have always been a very clever and mature child." Grandmother says in reply as she runs her fingers through my curly red hair.

"I can't control when I have visions, sometimes I have them when I am asleep," She says pointing to the dairy.

"Or when I am awake," She said as she tapped the sketchbook.

"The Visions I have when I am awake are easy to see but hard to interpret. On the other hand, the visions I see in my sleep are easy to interpret but sometimes I cannot tell if they are simply dreams or nightmares." Grandmother explained.

"I see, so I need to be careful with the Dairy because if some of the entries are only nightmares then I could put myself in danger by trusting it on the other hand if they are true visions and I ignore it I would also be put in danger." I thought out loud as I scanned through the Dairies pages, I couldn't help but cringe at grandmother's handwriting. I have always had a hard time reading cursive.

"That's right Blythe," Grandmother said as she gave me a small smile.

"Life is not easy for anyone Blythe. We just have to do our best and keep moving forward." Grandmother gives me a big hug and stares at me for quite a long while. It was as if she was trying to burn my face into her mind.

"It's late Blythe, I have kept you up too long and you have a very big day after all." She says as she drags me back to my room.

The sky was still dark out but I was now exhausted from the overload of information I had learned. My grandmother must have been tired as well since neither of us noticed that while she was dragging me back to my room I dropped the Dairy in the hidden passageway. The Dairy of my grandmother's visions and nightmares was left behind in a dark and dusty corner of the secret corridors.


	3. Chapter 2: Arriving at Heartstown

'Knock Knock'

I heard a soft sound against my mahogany doors but I ignore it in favor of cuddling my favorite doll. I was just so comfortable in my soft bed Surrounded by fluffy blankets.

'SLAM'

I am startled awake by my brother Aaron slamming my bedroom door open. I groan in protest griping my bed frame tightly as he grabs my ankles and tries to pull me out of bed.

Since Aaron is 18 years old and a tall young man he quickly succeeds in dragging me out of bed. I open my eyes and glare at my childish older brother. His response is the same as always an infuriating smirk. Behind him, I can hear the castle maids peaking through my now open door giggling at our antics.

But before my brother and I can start our regular morning banter, we hear the strict and commanding voice of my uncle echo through the halls.

"All of you! Get back to work!" He practically yells at the unfortunate palace workers.

My brother and I quickly stand up from my bedroom floor upon hearing his voice. We know from his tone that he is not in a good mood. Then again he is never in a good mood from my experience.

"Prince Aaron!" Our uncle says in such a loud voice that it seems to echo throughout the entire castle.

My brother flinches at our Uncles harsh tone and he meekly responds in a soft voice. "Yes, Uncle?"

"What have I told you about speaking!" Uncle practically screams at Aaron's face. My brother seemed to be on the verge of tears at this point so I try to speak up.

"Uncle-"I start to say but he turns to me and interrupts before I have a chance to say anything else.

"Not a word from you! Young Princess!" He scolds me before returning his attention to my brother.

MY brother has always been a bit timid and soft-spoken. Our parents believed that having our Uncle as an instructor would toughen him up. But in my own opinion, it hasn't helped him much, it may have actually made him worse in that aspect. My brother is a very smart young man and when it is just the two of us he is much more confident. He is as brave as a lion, but around our parents and uncle, Aaron turns into a meek mouse.

Thankfully our father comes into the room cutting our Uncles lecture short.

"Children are you ready to go? We are leaving in 20 minutes." My father's kind voice has always been wonderful to hear.

He looks at my uncle's Irritated face, my brother's watery eyes, and me standing awkwardly in my nightgown. Father takes a deep breath before turning to address my uncle.

"Brother, it's their vacation lighten up," He says as he pats our Uncle on his back.

"Of course your Majesty" Our uncle replies before he leaves the room.

"Now my dear son, don't look so down. I know that he may not seem like he cares but he does." Father tells Aaron who simply gives a weak smile in response.

"As for you my little princess," He says while pulling lightly at my messy hair.

"Go get dressed in your traveling clothes and meet us at the carriage," Father says before he together with Aaron takes their leave.

I quickly get dressed in my cream traveling dress with red accents. I slip on my long woolen socks and my favorite red leather riding boots. Last but not least I put on my red cloak and pick up my satchel.

A coachman brings my trunk to the carriage for me while I carry my satchel and saddlebags. My trunk and the majority of our luggage get put inside the carriage. Together my family starts saying our goodbyes to Uncle and Grandmother. A stable boy brings my brother and me our horses and fastens our saddles and bags for us. My brother rides a black stallion while I ride a white mare, our parents are ridding in the carriage which is drawn six horses with a honey gold coat. Accompanying us on our journey is a squad of elite soldiers, each one handpicked by my uncle.

"May the morning star light your path," Grandmother says before we leave.

"And let the north start lead us home." I say in reply.

That was a strange saying my grandmother always preformed every time someone left home. It was her way of wishing us a safe journey.

The trip to our mother's hometown was not as exciting as my brother and I remembered. It was just long and boring at some points. We had to take a different travel route than previous trips. The places we passed by were mostly farms, fields, and unpopulated areas.

We did stop now and then to purchase goods, rest, and give the horses a break. During these breaks, I skimmed through my grandmother's sketches. One sketch in particular caught my eye; it was a sketch of me. I was wearing my traveling outfit with my sword drawn and kneeling in front of an injured woman who was lying on a patch of sunflowers.

Eventually, we arrived in the small village of Heartstown. My mother's birthplace had become known as a city of love throughout the land. Probably due to my parent's love story or more specifically how the villagers used the story as a tourist attraction. Many people commoners and nobles alike visit this town with their significant others for dates, proposals, and even weddings.

My parents most especially my mother were quite popular in town. Mother was especially close with the tavern keep, the innkeeper, and the mayor's daughter. They were all friends since childhood.

The soldiers who escorted us stayed in the inn with Sandy the innkeeper. My family on the other hand would be staying in Mother's Childhood home.

Somebody the things I enjoyed most about visiting my mother's hometown, was the fact that here we could be regular people. No fancy clothes, strict rules, or any expectations from the council.

When I was here, I could be just Blythe. Not her Royal Highness Princess of Arlan. The time we spend here in this town has always been an escape from royalty for my family.

My brother and I actually had friends here. We were especially close to the children of our mother's friends. Since we were often made to play together while they caught up.

Today we went to the Tavern, while most of our Eunterouge brought our things to the house.

My brother and I gave the reigns of our horses to Timothy, a friend of Aaron's. Timothy worked as a Stable boy in the town's Stable, he always took great care of all the animals.

We thanked him before following our parents inside the Tavern. As soon as we walked through those doors, the tavernkeeper Patrick greeted us with his Jolly voice.

"Catherine, William, and the kids! Welcome Back!" Patrick called out in his familiar greeting.

For as long as I can remember, every time we walked into his Tavern Patrick would call out those exact words.

Together we sit down at the Bar and smile giving our own greetings. As usual almost like clockwork, Patrick's wife Martha comes out of the kitchen.

Balancing food on not only both her arms but on the top of her head too.

"Here you go!" Martha says as she starts serving platters of food.

"Medium Steak with Balsamic vinegar and mashed potatoes for William," She said as she gave father his plate

"Chicken fingers with honey mustard sauce for Catherine," Martha said as she winked at mother. Before sliding her a bread basket from under the counter while still balancing a tray of food on her head.

"Frank's and Beans for Aaron," Martha says as she took one of the dishes off of the tray.

"My look how big you've gotten!" She says as she pinches my brother's blushing cheeks.

"And last but not the least" Martha continued as she removed the remaining plate from the top of her head.

"Spaghetti for little Blythe," she said giving me my food and ruffling my hair.

I pout at her actions but thank her for the food regardless.

Martha and Patrick are some of the few people who address us by not only our first names but also without our titles. They are practically honorary Aunt's and Uncle's to Aaron and I.

Martha always has our favorites ready the moment we sit down at the Bar. It has always been quite magical how perfect her timing is.

I stop eating midbite as I remember the conversation I had with my Grandmother before we left home. I can feel my brows furrow as I try to recall something from my grandmother's Journal.

"Is there something wrong with the food Blythe?"

I hear Martha ask me as she dries a cup with a rag. I snap out of my thoughts and notice how the rest of my family are subtly giving concerned glances.

"Oh no, it's fine Aunt Martha," I say before taking a big bite of my spaghetti.

"Perfect as always," I say as I swallow and smile at everyone.

"Blythe dear," my mother says with a gentle voice.

"You're only halfway done with your spaghetti." Mother continues as she gestured to my plate.

My brother decides to add on to her statement saying.

"Yeah normally your spaghetti's gone so fast it's like you're inhaling it!"

Blinking at their words I turn towards them and see that their plates are already empty.

"Is there something bothering you my little Princess?" My father asks.

For a moment I think about telling them about the magic room that grandmother showed me. But I don't think that they would take me seriously.

Instead of telling them, I look at the half-empty beer mugs beside their empty plates.

"I was wondering how to convince you guys to let me have a beer?"

I say knowing full well that my parents wouldn't agree. It would definitely distract them from my unusual mood.

Most of my family burst out in laughter, except my mother. My mother on the other hand gives me a light glare and a blunt.

"No way, not at your age Missy!"

I give her an exaggerated pout and say "Pretty Please?"

"I said No!" My mother says with a Huff as she gives her still laughing husband and friends a glare.

"But Aaron gets to drink so why can't I?" I try using an old technique that I used in previous arguments.

"Blythe we have been over this," my mother says she kicks father lightly for laughing so much.

"Aaron is 18, you are 12 and that's just how it is" She continues as she looks me straight in the eye.

"Deal with It"

Amongst everyone in our group, it was my brother who laughed the loudest. Seeing him laughing and relaxed was one of my favorite things about visiting Heartstown.


	4. Chapter 3: The Forest of Shadows

After finishing my food, Aaron and I decided to take a walk in the woods. All of our friends were either working or in school. Our parents went off to go catch up with their friends.

While wandering around the woods we decided to go pick some wild berries. Mother had passed down to us the secrets of the forest as per tradition. So unlike most of the village, we were not worried about the dangers of the woods.

One of these secrets was that when you pick berries, fruits, herbs, or flowers in the woods you need to place them in a special basket. This basket is made from materials in the forest. If you don't use this technique the moment you leave the forest the berries become poisonous, the fruit rots, the herbs lose their medicinal attributes, and the flowers wilt.

"Hey Aaron, wouldn't it be funny if you met your true love in the woods?" 

I remark offhandedly as I watch my brother trip and almost drop the basket at my question.

"Blythe!" He yells embarrassed by my comment, his blush was the same shade as the strawberry he was picking.

I poke his red cheeks as I laugh internally at his expression.

"Where did that come from?" Aaron huffed out as he glared at me.

He always looks and acts so much like Mom that it can be hard to keep a straight face. Especially when he glares.

Aaron inherited our Dad's blonde hair and general appearance but he has mom's blue eyes. I on the other hand got Dad's green eyes. I look a lot more like my grandmother including her red hair. My mother has brown hair that she inherited from her father.

Not many people realize that I get my hair color from my grandmother since her hair has turned silver with age. Many of the citizen's commoners and noble alike have gossiped over my heritage due to this.

"I was just thinking about Mom and Dad's story" I eventually reply to my brother, who stops his glare at my words.

"What do you mean?" He asked

"Well you are around the age they were when they first met right?" I say as we both start picking berries again and I try to find the right words to vocalize my thoughts.

"I have been eavesdropping on Uncle and the rest of the council." I eventually confess to my brother.

Aaron smirks at me and I roll my eyes as I try to distract myself with berry picking.

"Ooh, sneaky," He says as he lightly tugs on a lock of my hair.

I laugh at his antics and playfully push him away.

"Yeah I know I am, now hush," I say as I try to immigrate Mother's glare.

"Sooo" I start to say but my brother interrupts me by mimicking my voice.

"Soooo," he says in a bad attempt at a high pitched female voice.

I threw a berry at him playfully before I continue telling him what I had overheard.

"They are planning a huge ball next autumn," I tell Aaron who just rolls his eyes in response.

"What else is new?" He comments as he looks at me with an expression that screams 'why are we talking about this.'

"They are going to invite Princess, Nobles-" I try to continue but Aaron cuts me off again.

"Blythe they always do that!" Aaron exclaims as he gives me a dry look.

"Aaron they're going to try to get to find a wife" I finally say not looking him in the eye.

"Oh," he says gloomily as he stares at the berries in our basket.

My brother is a big romantic, he as always been like that. It was honestly not surprising considering that we both grew up hearing our parents and grandparents love stories. For as long as I can remember Aaron has dreamed of finding his own true love.

With the council always trying to set me up with other Royal and Noble boys. I was not too sure about romantic relationships. I love the idea of such relationships and how deeply people can love each other. But I'm a bit reserved for who I share my affection.

Unlike my brother I never had any crushes, it sorta made me stand out among the other girls my age. My family told me not to worry about it since I am still very young.

But whatever the case I know for certain, having experienced the council trying similar tricks with me that our parents would not make my brother marry a girl that he didn't love.

"I don't think that Mom and Dad know about the Council's plans," I tell my brother trying to cheer him up.

It helped him a little and we went back to picking berries. However knowing our Uncle, I knew that he would somehow make Aaron believe that marrying some stuck up princess was his duty as the future king. Our Uncle could be very manipulative and almost everyone seems to fall for his trick's, including Aaron and our parents.

We are both quiet for a while and I think about telling Aaron everything. Our Uncles manipulative ways, Grandmother's secret room, and even the sketchbook full of visions.

However before I can utter a single word, we hear a woman scream. The sound of her voice was not too far from us. My brother and I both draw our swords and run to the direction of the scream.

We eventually arrive in a part of the forest that I have never seen before. But neither of us has any time to dwell on the matter.

There was a young woman likely a noble since she was wearing a fine will dress. She was heavily injured and there was a horrible looking creature attacking her.

The creature was something right out of grandmother's storybooks. As my brother and I attempt to fend off the creature with our swords, I realized something. This creature was in many of the sketches in grandmother's sketchbook and it matched the description of one of grandmother's legends, the tale of the shadow war.

The tale of the Shadow War was one of the scarier stories that grandmother told us. The Shadows were creatures of darkness, evil beings that thrived on chaos, pain, hate, death, and others of that sort. According to the stories they also became stronger in the presence of fear.

I really wish that I had not left my grandmother's journal back at the castle. There was a large entry about shadows, but then again I would not have been able to open the book at the moment.

Looking between my brother and the young woman it was very clear that they were terrified. I was too but I tried to keep myself distracted by recalling grandmother's stories. Which was not an easy thing to do while in battle.

Thinking back on the stories I realized that there is no way that this Noblewoman could have survived for so long against the Shadows. At least not without some kind of defense. Unlike my brother and I, it was clear that this woman was not skilled in combat.

Taking another glance at the injured woman, I noticed that she was laying in a large patch of sunflowers. The flowers of the sun were often used as a ward against Shadows during the war. Blades coated in sunflower oil could even injure a shadow. It would not kill the creature but it would give us a chance to escape.

"Cover me!" I tell to my brother as I run to the sunflower patch.

I quickly coat my blade in the flower's juices and rub it into my clothes. I also find places to put sunflowers on my person. I give the same treatment to the injured woman before bringing back more flowers for my brother.

"Here!" I yell as I thrust the flowers at my brother.

"Take these and rub it on your clothes and coat your blade!"

I quickly start attacking the Shadow and with every hit, I make the creature hisses in pain.

My brother tries to help me but I can tell he has worn himself out. During the time I spent trying to remember the Shadow's weakness, he had been fighting. He had defended not only himself but also the noblewoman and me.

"Brother, take the woman and head towards the village!" I yell as I deflect a swing from the shadow.

"No way, I am not leaving you alone!" He growls back at me as he attacks the Shadow.

"I cannot carry her and you are exhausted brother" I reason with him as I guard his back against the Shadows claws.

He tries to protest but I cut him off. "We need to stay in the sunlight they are weaker against it!"

I feel a knot form in the pit of my stomach as I see the sun starting to set in the sky.

"It will be dark soon carry the girl and I will guard your back!" I said as I take another glance at the setting sun.

My brother thankfully complies and we start heading back towards the village. We were running as fast as we could. However, as the sky got darker more Shadows seemed to appear in the darkness.

With all the chaos my brother and I get separated. Finding myself alone, lost in the woods, and surrounded by shadows I start to cry.

I can barely see anything, the sun has set and it's practically impossible to see the Shadows in the darkness. I am sure that the tears running down my face aren't helping.

I am reaching my limit, my arms and legs are burning. I can't tell if the Shadows are getting faster or if I'm just getting slower.

My sword feels heavy in my hands as I take another swing. The shadow rips the sword from my grasp leaving me unarmed.

They are laughing at me, a horrible spine chilling yet mocking laughter. There's so many of them, too many to count. The sunflowers that had offered me meager protection are now worthless against a horde of Shadows.

I was more scared than I have ever been before in my life. Was this what grandmother warned me about? I wish that I had not dropped my satchel. Weren't the Shadows attacking me in one of her sketches? Was this what Grandmother saw in her visions?

I hear a rustle from the brush and there stands death with his black cloak and scythe. Seeing the Grimm Reaper before me, I know that this is where I die. Grandmother did say that she had witnessed many deaths in her visions.

Death walks past the Shadows who went still at his arrival. I could literally feel the magic in his bones it was terrifying.

He gently kneels before me on the ground and I can't suppress my flinch when he touches my shoulder. Surprisingly I don't die from his touch like in the stories.

The skeleton's stern expression seemed to soften a bit at my reaction. I don't know how that was possible since he was made of bone. But I was a bit light-headed from exhaustion and blood loss.

I could feel myself trembling as death picked up his scythe. But instead of cutting off my head as I expected, instead, he attacked the Shadows.

I watched with wide eyes as the blade of his scythe glowed with a bright light. The Shadows screamed in agony as the blade cut through their bodies like butter. That was the last thing I saw before I passed out.


End file.
